Stay
by overthemoonandstars
Summary: If Luke chose to wait instead of trying for rebirth. If, centuries after the characters we know and love have passed, Thalia does, too, and they finally have their peace. Futurefic Thaluke reunion.


**Okay, here's one for all you Thaluke shippers. **

**Yes, I am a die-hard Thaluke fan, but I'm not hating on Thalico- I just don't understand it. (Age difference? Large. Character connection? They barely talk. And they're related more than other demigods, as they're both Big Three children.)(Oh, and how can you NOT ship Thaluke while reading demigod Diaries? Gah. Beautiful.)**

**Song: Almost Lover, by A Fine Frenzy.**

**Sorry for missing last week's update, I was extremely busy. Get ready for next week's Percabeth Christmas (SPOILER ALERT) After Tartarus.**

_**Flames will be used to fuel my war chariot. Nice/helpful reviewers get a free pegasus ride.**_

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Thalia rarely thought about death.

It was something that always loomed over her, of course; a shadowy figure that would someday take her to Hades' realm.

But she was a _Huntress_. Death wouldn't come for a while.

Or so she thought.

There was a moment, in her final battle, when she saw a spear head for her second-in-command's chest with deadly accuracy, where she thought of what it would be like to finally pass. To just rest and see her old friends.

_I'd see Luke,_ she thought, and though it popped into her head despite her attempts to _not_ think of him, that thought was the one above all that pushed her forward until the weapon was trained on her chest instead.

And then it hit, and she fell, and in a minute or two, despite the Hunter's desperate attempts to heal her with nectar and ambrosia, everything went dark.

That darkness might've lasted ages or it might've been a second, but however long it was, Thalia appeared on the banks of the River Styx with a golden drachma in her hand. She started when a figure, cloaked in black, appeared in the edges of her vision in an old, rickety gondola and stood up in the boat.

"Don't worry about the fee," the man said, and put out his hand. It was all bones-no muscle or sinew or skin. A skeleton hand. _Charon,_ she thought.

"What?"

"Your father already sent me payment for the ferry. Didn't want his daughter to get stuck in my waiting room for all eternity." He turned his head up, and she could see that his face was the same as his hand, all bone. He thrust his hand out further impatiently. "Are you coming or not?"

She jumped into the boat, ignoring the hand, and sat on a bench while Charon ferried her across, warbling melancholy songs that sounded like a mix of Italian opera and funeral dirges. The sound echoed in the cold, damp darkness, and Thalia shivered.

She could see the lights of Elysium here, and also the fires burning in the Fields of Punishment. She hoped she ended up in Elysium, and she was sure she would-she'd dedicated her _life_ to killing monsters-but what if she couldn't find her friends? What if she was lonely? What if- she tried to stop herself from thinking it, but her mind was already forming the question- _What if Luke isn't there?_

She'd heard from Percy and Annabeth after the Titan war that Luke had said he'd try for rebirth, and that thought was the reason she hadn't quit the Hunters for so long. (She'd been there longer than Zoe had.) She didn't want to die and never see him again. So she spent her days hunting and fighting, keeping her mind off of those subjects.

She'd tried not to think of Luke- of the way he'd do almost anything for her, including use the powers he hated; of the way his eyes made her feel happy and crazy and exited and safe; of how he'd protected her and guided her. They'd even kissed once, on Half-Blood Hill the night she died the first time. She'd pulled him close and kissed him quickly on the lips, before turning away to face the oncoming horde of monsters. _This is it,_ she'd thought with a strange calmness, the feeling of his lips on hers sending a blast of warmth and courage through her body.

And then she thought of his betrayal- of the disorientation she'd had when she'd woken up a fifteen-year old, hearing that Luke had turned against the gods, started recruiting demigods for Kronos, and poisoned her.

That last part had been especially hard. _No,_ she'd said. _Luke wouldn't do that to me._

But he had, and the terrible thing was that she'd remembered- as a tree, she'd been vaguely aware of things, and she'd remembered a comforting touch of a hand, the sorrow of tears splashing on pine needles, and the pain of the injection, and poison that made her feel like she was on fire.

And she hadn't believed it- not really- until she'd gone to Mount Tam and fought him.

She was strong, and tough, and she scared everyone. But when she'd fought Luke? She broke down, barely able to see through the tears in her eyes. She never cried, not ever, so that little bit that filmed her eyes and splashed out slightly was practically sobbing for her. And Luke had seen those tears, and he hadn't faltered in his fight.

Although maybe- just _maybe_- she'd seen something in his eyes, too.

"We're here." Charon said, his gravelly voice breaking into her stupor. She got out of the gondola hurriedly, not saying a word.

"Have fun on the other side!" He called after her, then laughed his gravelly laugh and turned the boat around, warbling songs the whole way back.

Thalia took a deep breath started walking, past Cerberus, who growled, past all the ghosts that let her cut the line, up to the judge's stand. Three ominous gold masks stared back at her, unfeeling, unmoving.

They pulled thoughts from her mind, and she cringed as she saw the bad things- leaving her mother, fighting Percy at the creek, and different shows of her generally being impulsive and reckless and rude. Her spirits lifted when they pulled the good deeds from her mind, and she saw that they far outweighed the bad- dying for Annabeth and Luke and Grover, working as a Huntress, saving Olympus, among others.

"Elysium," a judge said, impassive. "Next."

She walked past the table and through the fields, where spirits parted for her. She searched for her mother, and then stopped trying. She'd only hurt herself.

it was along walk to Elysium, and so she let her thoughts wander- she thought back to that last battle with Luke, and how afterward she'd gladly accepted the invitation to join the Hunters. No boys, no mention of boys for all eternity? Exactly what she needed. She'd forget Luke completely-or so she'd told herself, because she never, ever forgot him, no matter how hard she tried.

As she got closer, the gates stopped seeming inviting and welcoming. They now looked menacing and cold. She hesitated when she stood in front, but then thought of her friends and family, placed her hand on the golden metal, pushed slightly, and opened the doors to a whole new world.

Her vision went crazy trying to take it all in- the glory of the false sky, the charm of old and modern architecture together, the pristine beauty of the overflowing gardens.

And then she saw them- a small group of her old friends. Annabeth, Percy, Jason and his wife, all their children she'd known. They'd all reversed to youth once they entered Elysium, all in perfect condition, with perfect, young bodies.

And then- _Luke._

She didn't know how or why, but all of a sudden, she was running to him, and him to her, and her arms were around his neck and his were around her waist and her face was buried in his neck and they were both laughing.

They quieted down, and then:

"I missed you, you know."

"I missed you, too."

They pulled apart after another moment. "Look at you," he breathed. "You're all grown up." And she was. Entering Elysium, her body had turned to the age she'd never gotten to live. From looking down, she could see that she was maybe twenty or so.

He placed his hand on her cheek, and laughed a little. "Gods, you're _here_," he said, as if he'd not arrived at that fact completely yet.

"Yes, I'm here. Do you need me to hit you to make sure?"

He was about to retort, and she was exited to hear the witty response, but then the rest of the crowd was upon her and she was greeting everyone else.

Once the group had dispersed, back to their perfect homes and perfect deaths, Luke turned to her. "Shall I show you around?" he asked, holding out an arm for her to take. She laughed and swatted it away, but said, "I'd enjoy that."

He led her around for a while- two, three hours? She lost track of time-until he led her up the steps of a familiar looking house.

"This is my place," he said quietly.

She looked up- and recognized the old style, the color, the shape, even though it was an old memory.

"You designed it after Hal's house, didn't you."

"Yeah," he smiled at her. "It reminded me of you."

He led her up the stairs, and the inside was much more pleasant than Hal's had been, full of light and open spaces. She was glad; being the daughter of Zeus, she hated confinement.

He turned to her, looking nervous all of a sudden. "Thal, I know we- I know we never really got to say this, but... I love you." His eyes were down and his voice was quiet, but she heard, and so she eased herself into his arms, looked up at him, and said, "Yeah. Me too." And then she kissed him, feather-soft and quick, but a kiss nonetheless.

In that moment, she realized that they had forever, and that they could be together, and that everything would be fine. She wondered why she hadn't died earlier.

"Thanks for waiting for me, Luke," she whispered into the crook of his neck. She could feel his throat tighten as he swallowed, and hum as he spoke.

"Tonight, since you don't have a house here, could you-" he swallowed again, but then spoke clearly. "Stay with me."

And so she laid in his arms that night, feeling his heartbeat-she didn't know why he had one despite being dead, but it was comforting to feel- and she knew that there was time to exchange stories everyone tomorrow, and everything would be peaceful and calm and she'd settle into a routine and everything would be fine forever, because that's how long death lasted.

But it wasn't just death that lasted forever, she thought as she turned her head to look up at Luke's peaceful, resting face. Love did, too.

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**So, Thalia and Luke get reunited, get in a relationship, and have forever ahead of them. Life's good.**

**Thanks for reading!**

**Yours in demigodishness, and all that. overthemoonandstars out.**


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